Offshore wind farms are expected to make a significant contribution to European electricity demand over the next 40 years, according to a report being published this month by the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA).
While onshore wind farms currently represent 96.5% of total installed wind energy capacity, the offshore wind sector is growing fast and in 2010 represented almost 10% of all new wind energy installations that year.
By 2050, EWEA assumes 735GW of wind power will be installed of which 460GW will be located offshore, outstripping onshore capacity by 275GW.
In light of the anticipated growth in wind farms – by 2020 most EU countries are expected to have tripled their wind power capacity – this year's Helitech Conference is devoting a session to discussing the opportunities provided by wind farms as well as some of the challenges that operators could face. Helitech's conference is taking place at the Imperial War Museum at Duxford, near Cambridge, on the afternoon of 28 September and the morning of 29 September.
Helitech exhibition manager, Brandon Ward, said: “Representatives from many of the world's largest oil and gas operators have been visiting Helitech since it launched 25 years ago. We wanted to provide a topical session to address some of the latest requirements of this important sector of the rotary wing market. Wind farm support is still in its early days but is obviously going to grow significantly over the coming years as more wind farms are established.”
The Helitech Conference is being held during the three-day Helitech exhibition (27-29 September). To view the programme and book a free place visit www.helitechevents.com/conference
www.helitechevents.com
